It has been a couple of weeks since we put a new post up and to be honest, sometimes we are just too busy, believe it or not. I commend all the people banging out posts on a regular basis…even daily but I am just not that motivated. Although when we are writing a couple of weeks in arrears, it’s difficult to recall what we’ve been up to…….Amanda is doing some clothes washing and I am doing some emailing/banking chores and paying bills etc so decided to close the blinds, make a cup of coffee, put some tunes on and bang out a post.

Photo’s are a good reminder and Amanda tends to keep a diary which is great for prompting me. I know though that at times its hard to fit it in with all this simple enjoying life but that in a decade or so we will enjoy reading this nonsense and reflecting on our adventure around the globe. Krk was a great spot but we were keen to move South and explore more locations along the coastline. The coastline is dotted with enticing villages and little harbors asking to be explored. The weather has been grand and we’ve even been in the Adriatic a few times for a swim. The photo’s (sorry there are so many) show how crystal clear the water is here and the colors are fantastic.

Heading South we stopped in Selce and found a spot for Pinot beside the beach. It’s a bit of a haven for divers and on the Sunday afternoon we arrived there were a couple of dozen assembled 50 meters from our front door exchanging stories. It’s reasonably quiet here at the moment but suspect in a month or two, things will get hectic. This coastline is a boaters dream with so few craft on the water and the conditions perfect…………maybe next time we could buy one and spend a few months lurking around these Islands…Amanda will read this and probably delete this part about a boat before I post it 😉 ..These little swimming spots are right outside our front door…Not sure what this is below, maybe just a little area for the kiddies to paddle in….thank God the little buggers are all still at school now though!.

We spent a couple of nights then drove a little further South and overnighted in Senji, a City they say dates back in some form for around 3,000 years……..we spent a couple of hours meandering through the streets and a lot of them looked derelict, yet we could still see the odd window open with signs of habitation…..non of the tourist dollars are being spent on the towns upkeep and its looking pretty knackered. It’s a shame because some of the buildings from the 19th Century are very grand. Anyway we stopped in a square for a coffee and stupidly didn’t ask for a menu. Amanda simply asked for 2 coffees and they promptly arrived with a crappy small cup of luke warm coffee (and I use the word coffee but could use another beginning with C) and a bill for 40 Kuna…..we had been paying about 24 Kuna in much more upmarket cafes. I sat drinking it then went inside and asked for a menu, where it stated 20 Kuna……..the waitress choked when I asked for the menu. Amanda saw the price and BOOM off she went to confront the staff…….red faced waitress and bumbling manager said they would just check it as there must be a computer glitch …..computer glitch my ass, they were using a bloody abacus I thought…a few minutes later, said waitress/thieving bitch arrived with an apology of sorts and told us they were free. …can’t believe people would be living here ….renovators dream, or maybe nightmare. We were going to move on but spotted a very small harbour with a dozen or so motorhomes parked right beside the water, so being wanderers with no real time constraints we swung in and camped up for a night. Unfortunately it was such a beautiful setting we opened a bottle of wine with some cheese and assorted olives etc a wee bit early and by 9.00pm and another bottle of wine we retired for a very sound nights sleep with only the lapping of the water beside us……happy days!You may be able to pick out Pinot….the scene of the crime the preceding evening The bar below beside the harbour was open but So WAS OURS lol..It wasn’t a particularly early start the next morning but with everything tucked away we fired Pinot up and ventured further South with no particular thought on where to stop next. It’s so easy to use superlatives throughout this post but each bend in the road along this Coast is really amazing and unfortunately neither of us are good enough photographers to capture it well. It’s littered with deserted coves and made even more beautiful with the green flora running down to the water. We thought we might travel down the Island of Pag and drove down to the ferry but looking from the mainland it looked like a lunar landscape….no vegetation anywhere so kept travelling along the mainland route….oh apparently its famous for its cheese and wild parties during Summer.looking over to Pag, you can see how sparce it looks. I try to keep Pinot clean and every now and again there’s a pressure car wash in the petrol stations so for a few Euro, it gets a really good scrub.….Next stop was to Sv Filip Jakov referred to locally as the Pearl of the Riviera….yes I know the Riviera is in the South of France, and Italy etc but that’s what this little gem refers to itself as and I’m not going to disagree.It’s a very small town ..and Camp Moce, our spot for a couple of nights is another great find. Apparently the former gentry from Zadar used this place as their Summer retreat and there are still some very grand homes around the place. All these places offer sailing,diving, snorkeling etc and why wouldn’t they with such beautiful (ooops another superlative) surrounds. As you can see in the photo’s we are inclined to wear T shirts and shorts these days……hooray warmer temps at last.

Zadar…was only a 40 minute bus ride away so it would be rude not to go in and see what it had to offer……no sooner di I mention shorts and T shirt than the weather turned and we had to dig out something more suitably to 18 degrees and RAIN

Zadar is known for its Roman and Venetian ruins and the Venetian walls surround the City. There’s a Roman era forum and a very nice 1th Century Convent and there’s even a very nice musical Sea Organ cleverly inserted in the promenade. All very whimsical but a nice touch all the same. So after many hours snooping around the joint we were naughty and sat down for a cold beer and a damn big burger on a black bun. Don’t judge us……..we shared it and it was yum!…see below. …Sea organs and solar panels light show ..We had intended to go to Plitvice Lakes when we first arrived in Croatia but for a couple of reasons we were too far South before realizing it, so instead decided to visit its poor relation the Krk National Park. Apparently smaller and quieter but no less special…..WOW what a spectacle….(another superlative…I will try to desist) We thought we would stay at a camping ground which promoted itself as the closest camp spot to the Lakes entrance so arrived there late afternoon and made dinner and retired early. We drove to the entrance of the National Park early next morning to discover a huge free car park right at the entrance gates and a bloody Hotel and Campsite right next door…..liar liar pants on fire….closest to the park my as*..We arrived to find the place virtually empty, so had the the Lakes almost to ourselves, before the coaches arrived. The place is stunning…(bugger it another superlaxitive…what? I meant superlative …..but then again Amanda does say I talk shi* sometimes)....Apparently there’d been some rain a couple of weeks before, so we really did have a nice show. We also had a background of frogs croking joyously in the back ground, a very pleasant distraction, unlike the toads we have in Southeast Queensland.......….…On from Krk toward another unknown destination ( oh the joy of freedom) and passed some Mussel farms, some of which we enjoyed a few days later…..big fat juicy Molluscs super fresh and full of flavor.

Trogir sounded interesting so that was the next stop (Camp Rozac) A lovely site in Trogir (Unescorted Town) on the Central Adriatic Coast which is on a small island and is connected by a very small bridge. Another is in mid construction a couple of hundred meters away which will no doubt help the congestion of some tourists. It’s a lively little place but I fear 10 years from now that small town will be over run by the hoarders of tourists starting to flock to Croatia….be careful what you wish for !We had a nice pith bang on the water and a nice spot for a late afternoon dip.…Lovely sight to wake up to in the morning………..I meant Amanda of course, but the water vista was ok too !!!! More brownie points pour mo. By the way, some of you are interested in Vino prices depending in which Country we are in and as you can see in the picture below, it looks more like a bottle of olive oil but surprisingly its a decent drop, a bit like Pinot Grigio….and the price ? About $20 for 5 liters . This is just for Amanda tonight, I got the red…a lovely little quaffer, So you’ll be fine on your trip Alana, Jeff and crew !!!!....Such a well positioned camp site on a tiny isthmus and within a leisurely 15 minute saunter to Trogir townlove a good laundry…......On our second morning a lovely young Lady popped her head around the van and introduced herself. Lisa and Joey are travelling from Melbourne in their motorhome and were parked a couple of vans away, so loose plans were made to imbibe a couple or 3 vinos that evening. Lisa is also an avid fan of karaoke and carries her own machine with accompanying mics, so she treated us to a few numbers before sunset…..and what a fabulous voice she has……I must admit I was a tad nervous (what would the neighbors think ) before she belted out a few numbers and even encouraged Amanda with the help of a little lubrication in the form of bubbles to have a go. Fun evening guys…thanks! She even has her guitar on board so we belted out a couple more before the natives started a riot.

Another bonus staying here is we can catch the local ferry for the princely sum of $7 each way from Trogir the next day to the wonderful town of Split … It’s an interesting City, the second largest in Croatia and famous mostly because the Roman Emperor Diocletian built a huge Palace here in the 4th Century, and enclosed it with City walls. It is a great mix of old and new, made even more spectacular due to the Mostar Mountains directly behind the City. It has lots and lots of bars and Restaurants and Lisa reliably informed us that the one made popular by Rick Stein was indeed very good….she had fish but Joeys piglet sounded a better choice 😉lovely afternoon with Lisa and Joey..Wide Promenade runs the length of the Old Town….although the high rises hidden behind the old town don’t look too appealing.....Nice old architecture which I assume like all tourist spots has been tittilated over the years, but there are still around 200 old buildings still standing within the City Walls…..oh and we had the best coffee so far on this Croatian leg of our trip….and only 28 Kuna.….Lots of this limestone around the City…..apparently the Whitehouse got some of its stonework from this area….maybe ;_).Interestingly Diocletian was one of the only Roman Emperors to voluntarily retire….the rest I presume died in battle or were stabbed to death by the likes of Brutus...endless choices of restaurants .. books and crannies to explore …and rubbing this chaps toes brings good luck !!!…..Don’t blame me for all these pics….Amanda goes as mad as a cut snake when she adds the pics.....Anyway folks, that’s about it for now and I am still a week behind, so will make an effort to get another away next week…….so much to see and so little time lol

Lots of love

A and A